Filming a Dialogue Scene

Once you’ve ensured you’ve created a clear vision of the scene, with a script breakdown, and worked on the angles you want for crafting the tone of the scene to go with the dialogue with a storyboard, you are ready to film! Planning your shoot in this manner will ensure your film is technically sound, while still giving you room to experiment. Other rules to keep in mind while filming dialogue include:

• Shoot coverage! You need multiple angles and cutaways in order to flesh out your scene appropriately in post-production. Follow the workshop in class - shoot the entire scene from multiple angles... not just the bits you have worked out. This will keep the conversation flowing and natural.

• Make sure the mics stay out of the shot. Sounds obvious, but in the excitement of laying down awesome shots/angles, this can be forgotten.

• Stay consistent with your lenses for similar shots. Using a variety of camera lenses is as useful as changing angles, but if you’re not consistent with similar shots (i.e. using two different lenses for close-ups) it’s off-putting for audiences.

Keep Focus With Depth of Field & Over the Shoulder Shots

A common shot for dialogue scenes are over the shoulder angles, which can be useful for showing the interactions between characters. The sad reality, however, is that many young filmmakers shoot these all wrong.

The person talking is the focus, so make sure your over the shoulder framing reflects that. Two-thirds of the frame should be dedicated solely to the speaker, with the remaining third on the character whose back is to the frame. Half and half doesn’t work, as it keeps viewers’ eyes bouncing between both without any clear distinction on who’s the focus. Plus, you don’t want to cover up the speaker with someone’s back.

Need Some Revision, or ExTensions? Check these out!

Have a look at the following script - how would you divide it up into shots to create a sequence?